1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a radioactive mixture and a manufacturing method thereof, especially to a radioactive mixture and a manufacturing method thereof applied to liver cancer treatment.
2. Description of Related Art
Liver is the largest organ inside the abdominal cavity. According to sources, liver cancer is divided into two types One is called primary hepatic tumor that starts in the liver and the other is the secondary hepatic tumor that has spread from the primary site to the liver. The hepatocellular carcinoma (hepatoma) is the most common primary liver cancer.
In Americans and most of Europeans, hepatic tumor is not common. However, liver cancer is one of the most malignant tumors in Asian and African countries. According to statistics of Department of Health in 2007, cancer has become the top cause of death. Liver cancer is the first leading cause of death in men while the second in women.
Liver cancer is lack of. symptom and early syndrome. The diagnostic methods for hepatoma consist of liver ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT) and hepatic angiography. In about 60-80% patients, the alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in their blood increases. The AFP is a useful marker in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. Although liver ultrasound and traditional CT detect hepatic tumors, both methods are not sensitive enough. Thus the small hepatocellular carcinoma with multiple nodules may not be detected. As to tumors smaller than 2 mm, ultrasound could not detect and the diagnosis is especially difficult in tumors with liver cirrhosis. Generally, surgery is the first choice of treatment for hepatoma. Yet the patients are often uncomfortable after surgery and the recovery period after the operation varies from patient to patient.
Lipiodol is an iodized fatty acid extracted from Poppy-seed oil. The glycerol therein is esterified by ethanol to get an iodized contrast agent that is often applied to lymph and bile duct X-ray imaging in clinical. Lipiodol can stay quite a long time inside the liver tumors. Due to a large amount of iodine in its structure, 131I-Lipidol (iodine-131-labeled lipidol) agent is get once the iodine is replace by radioactive 131I and the agent is used for radiation therapy of liver cancers. In European, 131I-Lipidol is available for liver cancer therapy. Yet the half-life of iodine-131 is as long as 13 days and emits high energy gamma rays (364 keV) while its Beta ray energy is not high. Thus this is not an ideal therapeutic nuclide. Moreover, Professor Takayasu, National Cancer Centre, Tokyo, Japan, recommends 90Y-Lipiodol that emits pure beta particles to treat liver cancers. But the half-life of the isotope 90Y is 64.1 hours. Although a lot of studies show that the nuclide feature of 90Y emitting pure beta particles (β=2.2 MeV) is much better than that of 131I, however free 90Y causes severe bone marrow damage.
Thus there is a need to provide a radioactive mixture and a manufacturing method for liver cancer treatment that not only treat liver tumors but also prevent bone marrow injuries caused by free 90Y.